Living Large In The Land Of The Shire Draft Horse

The largest breed of draft horse in the world is theincorporated. Therefore, there have been close ties
English Shire Horse, which originated in the centraland good relations between the Shire Horse Society in
shires of England. Members of this breed have beenBritain and the American Shire Horse Association,
recorded up to 23 hands high or 7.5 feet tall measuredmuch more so than with the other draft breed
at the withers and weighing nearly 3 tons. The Shireassociations. However, in the late 1900's, with limited
has been known by many names, such as the Greatknowledge and a spirit of independence, some of the
Horse, Giant Horse of Lincolnshire, English Cart Horse,American breeders appeared to resent those ties, so
War Horse and Large Black English Horse.a continued effort for unity has been an ongoing topic
The origin of the Shire breed is lost in the mists ofof concern by the leadership of both associations.
antiquity, which is true for many breeds, but it isBetween 1900 and 1918 almost four thousand Shire
believed that it is a descendant of the Old EnglishHorses were imported to the United States, but when
Black Horse whose ancestors were considered thehorses were replaced by cars, this led to a decline in
'great horses' during medieval times. During the perioddemand for draft horses and then following World
between the reign of Henry II in 1154 and that ofWar II, this ancient horse was almost lost when the
Elizabeth in 1558, the British government wasinvention of the modern farm tractor nearly made the
constantly seeking to increase the size and number ofbreed extinct. The low point came in 1950's. The 1960's
horses called the Great Horse because the weight ofsaw a resurgence in the draft horse business as
a horse soldier in armor was nearly 400 pounds. DuringAmericans rediscovered its usefulness. The Shire
the reign of King John, from 1199 to 1216, one hundredbreed became so popular that in 1971 the National
stallions of large stature were imported from Flanders,Brewing Company of Baltimore assembled an eight
Holland, and it is from the blending of these animalshorse hitch of Shires for publicity purposes and
with the English breeds some 800 years ago, thattraveled to two hundred and seventy-three parades
some strains of England's heavy horses trace back to.between 1971 and 1973 promoting the company and
But the Shire Horse's history in England is not thatthe breed.
simple. A direct ancestry could not be determined untilThe Shire Horse is an animal of enormous size,
the mid to late 18th century and up to that point it is stillstanding from 16.2 and up to 19 hands or more, with
sketchy. The earliest suggested ancestor was the17.1 being average for the breed. The tallest horse on
English War Horse that was used for jousting andrecord is a Shire that stands approximately 23 hands
cavalry purposes, but although these horses had sizeat 4 years old, and he's still growing. This behemoth
they did not have the traditional characteristics of theweighs nearly 3000 pounds, but the average Shire
Shire today. With the invention of gun powder, thehorse tips the scale at a mere 2200 pounds, with
War Horse was not as valuable to the army and themares and geldings being slightly less massive. The
cavalry wanted smaller, faster horses to ride, so thetraditional Shire Horse today can be black, bay, brown,
Great Horse was now turned out to pasture and toor grey in color. Any horse that is roan, chestnut or
work on the farms. Horses declined in numbers duringsplashed with white is not considered to be a true
this time, but farmers were still breeding the remainingShire Horse.
animals for size. Many believe this is where the ShireThe head of the Shire Horse is long, lean and
was really bred from: the horses of the Flanders andmasculine, neither too large nor too small with the nose
the smaller black Friesians.being slightly Roman. It has a long, slightly arched neck
Eventually there was a need to organize the breed aswith a good crest that is in proportion to the body and
its own, so in 1878 the English Cart Horse Society wasthat gives the horse a commanding appearance.
formed. But it was not until 1880 that the first copy ofGeldings tend to have a thicker, masculine neck. The
the stud book was actually published with 376 entries.eyes are relatively large, wide-set and alert, with the
The Society changed its name to the Shire Horseears being long, lean, sharp and sensitive. Shoulder
Society (SHA) in 1884. The first Shire Horse Showshould be deep, oblique, and wide enough to support a
was held in 1890 and the breed's popularity soared. Byharness collar with the horse also being wide across
1905 there were 3781 entries in the stud book.the chest. The Shire Horse's back is short, strong and
The Shire started out in Canada and the United Statesmuscular and should not be either dipped or roached
at roughly the same time. The new found popularityand the body has a substantial barrel. The tail should
for the Shire was not only in England, but had spreadbe set well up and both head and tail should be carried
to America. There had been importing of Shires sinceerect. The legs are long and the abundant feathering
the mid- to late 1800's. The information before 1850 isshould be fine, straight and silky. Mares may be slightly
sketchy, but there was a stallion named Tamworthsmaller with a feminine, matronly appearance and
described as a Shire that was brought to Canada byshould have plenty of room to carry a foal.
British troops in 1836.When in motion, the Shire should move with force,
The creation and promotion of the English Shireusing both knees and hocks, with the latter being kept
registry in the U.S. was partly due to Americansclose together. A 1-ton Shire is capable of moving a
wanting registered stock, and of course, they wanted5-ton load, yet it is one of the gentlest of horses.
to continue with keeping records once the horsesToday the Shire horse is flourishing all over the world.
arrived on American soil, as well as having the desireThere are approximately 3000 Shires in England and
to improve the quality of the breed. Since it was in the1000 in the U.S. with the Canadian population at 130
best interest of the SHA to insure a quality animal inhorses and the popularity of the Shire has begun to
the U.S. in order to continue their exports and fill angrow again. The Shire is still one of the major breeds in
ever-increasing demand, the British contributed funds toGreat Britain and will probably remain so for many
help organize the registry in the U.S. and in 1885, theyears.
American Shire Horse Association (ASHA) was